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Sunday, September 16, 2012

Ballpark Update: Paul Foster May Donate Luther Building

The City of El Paso could get a sizable gift in the form of the Luther Building at its upcoming City Council meeting. Among the many baseball stadium-related items the City will consider at its September 18, 2012 meeting, one deals with the possible donation of the building to the City by Paul Foster. The City must find Downtown buildings for relocation of City departments so that City Hall may be demolished to make room for a Triple-A ballpark.

The Luther Building is outlined in yellow.

The Luther Building, located at 218 N. Campbell Street, was originally considered for purchase by the City in July, but was removed from consideration when other building options opened up. At the time, the City could have purchased the 62,400 square foot building for $17.4 million after thorough renovations were promised on the seller's side. Now, the City may get the building for free but with no improvements to its current condition.

The building is located directly across E. Mills Avenue from the El Paso Times building, which the City is also considering for purchase. An item to purchase the Times building was originally on the September 18 agenda but was postponed due to appraisal inconsistencies.

Paul Foster is one of the members of the group trying to bring the Triple-A baseball club to El Paso.